Teacher/therapist: to introduce 2 new learning tools to classroom to engage students, collect data and to drive focus for an assignment.

1. Virtual Zoo Trip – www.sandiegozoo.org/pandacam/


Pros to support student learning: Engaging, Live features, stress free, visual, voice output, video gallery, great actual photographs and live footage. Check out the Daily panda log, which lets you recap the daily escapades!


Brain Research Support:Thanks to the dopamine release in the brain and relational memories, students are more likely going to remember things that they find interesting of have a part in figuring it out for themselves. When they have choices, their motivation increases and stress diminishes. They will be more accepting of the errors and less self conscious.

2. Survey Monkey - www.surveymonkey.com

Pros to support teaching/student learning: Easy to use, great way to engage students, class participation, leveling the playing field

Brain Research Support: Making it relational memories increases information being retained in the long term memory and meaningful memories. Also, spatial ordering ( visual thinking) helps us understand information being presented visually, and making products that are visual and organizes materials and work.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/MySurvey_EditorFull.aspx?sm=hWQe1Fi4Z9t3OgXPY9aodrVBsXmj9YXM%2bmb02qFtjfA%3d

4th grade student; with dysgraphia and dyslexia, illegible handwriting, reading level 2-3rd grade, spelling issues – 2nd grade level, organization help, attention issues –very distracted. Hardworking and has great ideas.

Student objectives: to learn about endangered species and present information in 2 different multimedia formats.

1. Presentation in Writing
Graphic Organizer - www.readwritethink.com

Pros: easy to use, no stress, very visual

Brain Research Support: Using our graphic organizers – we are teaching students how to prioritize information. We are determining what facts are worthy of writing down and reviewing them. When we demonstrate how to do that ( using graphic organizers and key questions for assignments, surveys etc...) we are showing them how to find it themselves as they read text and study. In doing so we are reducing the amount of work they need to use, hence reducing stress.

panda_graphic_organizer.JPG

2. Auto Collage- http://www.microsoft.com/education/

Pros: Have students gather images from the Web or snap their own photos on a subject. Then, they can create a unique piece of art using this free collage-making tool.


Brain Research Support: Understanding incoming oral and written information and communicating ideas orally and in writing helps build language and higher order thinking.
Panda_Collage.jpg